$1100 vet bill: Save him or let him go?
Derrick's dog Rocco, a 9-year-old rottweiler, became sick over the Christmas holiday. He looked extremely pitiful. He was lethargic and wouldn't stand up (even to pee), so Derrick took him to the vet. After an initial exam, the vet told Derrick that he suspected that Rocco had lyme disease, and because it was a holiday weekend, Rocco would have to stay with the vet for a couple of nights to have X-rays taken and some other tests done.
Total cost for the exam, housing, X-rays, tests, and medicine = $1,100.
(Say it with me: "OUCH?!")
Spending $1,100 when you're not expecting to will hurt you anytime of the year. When it's the weekend before Christmas and you still haven't finished your Christmas shopping -- coupled with the fact that you also spent money on nice gifts for your son and girlfriend's birthdays earlier in the month -- it can be particularly devastating. BUT, my man LOVES his dog, so there was no way he wasn't going to spend the money for Rocco to get better. Thankfully, when we picked Rocco up from the vet two days later, he looked like his old self. However, the vet discovered another problem.
The X-rays revealed that Rocco has calcification in his spine in several areas. Apparently this is faily common in older dogs (at 9, Rocco is geriatric, ya'll). This condition can be painful for Rocco, so the vet suggested keeping Rocco comfortable with pain medicine (for the rest of his life!). Also, the poor dog can no longer go on long walks, run, or jump (all things he loves to do). Doing too much of any of these things could result in his paralysis. Another suggestion not highly favored by the vet was surgery. Surgery on each area of calcification would cost at least $5,000 for EACH AREA. Five thousand dollars, people! As much as Derrick loves his dog, even he wasn't sure if he could handle that.
So, I must ask the question: Is your dog's life worth more than $5,000? How about $1,000?
What's the most you would you pay to save your dog?!
Total cost for the exam, housing, X-rays, tests, and medicine = $1,100.
(Say it with me: "OUCH?!")
Spending $1,100 when you're not expecting to will hurt you anytime of the year. When it's the weekend before Christmas and you still haven't finished your Christmas shopping -- coupled with the fact that you also spent money on nice gifts for your son and girlfriend's birthdays earlier in the month -- it can be particularly devastating. BUT, my man LOVES his dog, so there was no way he wasn't going to spend the money for Rocco to get better. Thankfully, when we picked Rocco up from the vet two days later, he looked like his old self. However, the vet discovered another problem.
The X-rays revealed that Rocco has calcification in his spine in several areas. Apparently this is faily common in older dogs (at 9, Rocco is geriatric, ya'll). This condition can be painful for Rocco, so the vet suggested keeping Rocco comfortable with pain medicine (for the rest of his life!). Also, the poor dog can no longer go on long walks, run, or jump (all things he loves to do). Doing too much of any of these things could result in his paralysis. Another suggestion not highly favored by the vet was surgery. Surgery on each area of calcification would cost at least $5,000 for EACH AREA. Five thousand dollars, people! As much as Derrick loves his dog, even he wasn't sure if he could handle that.
So, I must ask the question: Is your dog's life worth more than $5,000? How about $1,000?
What's the most you would you pay to save your dog?!
posted by Charlie Mack's Granddaughter at Saturday, January 06, 2007
7 Comments:
WHATEVER IT COSTS. Seriously. WHATEVER IT COSTS.
I would spend as much as I have, and I would beg, borrow, and steal to keep Chelsea Marie Coleman alive and well.
-T
I can't fathom spending that much on an animal. I'm an animal LIKER...but not an animal LOVER. One day I want a dog, but I will definitely get pet insurance. Does Derrick have that for Rocco? I would probably have Rocco put to sleep since he's in a lot of pain and needing to have multiple surgeries. I would see this as me doing what's best for him. But this is coming from someone who is an animal LIKER..not an animal LOVER.
Pet insurance doesn't cover expenses like that.
(Note to self: Don't let Tndrhrt ever doggy sit Jaru and Lucy. ROFL!)
Damn, I guess I can't doggy sit Creole's dogs either. *lol*
Uhm, I'm kind of a dog liker. I can be around them for awhile (if they're friendly), but them I'm happy to go home to my pet free house.
Would I spend that kind of money on a pet? Absolutely not. Not so sure I would even take a sick pet to the vet. (Am I evil? *lol*)
I recall when I was growing up, we had 2 dogs. My little cocker spaniel Jose got sick one day, moved slower and slower, then died. No vet. A few tears and then I moved on. Same thing with the Doberman that we had for 10 years. He had some type of condition that caused him to fall down and bump into things. One day he died (I was 17). No vet. A few tears and then I moved on.
Lawd geevus...Imma keep you evil witches away from my babies. And TDJ...AS MUCH AS JARU LOVES HIM SOME YOU! Humph!
Derrick didn't have pet insurance for Rocco and when he looked into it after he found out about Rocco's health, he discovered that pet insurance doesn't cover dogs Rocco's age.
I wrote this blog because I ran into a lot of people who felt the way Gladys and TDJ do. My mom paid $400 to have my dog, Fluffy, buried several years ago and she thought that was too much, so imagine what she thought about us spending $1,100 on Rocco.
Update: Rocco is doing much better now and doesn't seem to be suffering at all. He's been without pain meds for a week now and he seems to be back to his old self. We're thinking the doctor was overexaggerating his spinal condition. We're going to continue to monitor his progress.
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